Alan Kulwicki
| Alan Kulwicki | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cause of death | Plane crash | ||||||
| Awards | 1992 Winston Cup Champion
1986 NASCAR Rookie of the Year 1998- Named one of NASCAR's 50 Greatest Drivers 2002- Inducted in the International Motorsports Hall of Fame 1978 American Speed Association (ASA) Rookie of the Year | ||||||
| NASCAR Cup Series career | |||||||
| 207 races run over 9 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 1st - 1992 (Winston Cup) | ||||||
| First race | 1985 Wrangler SanforSet 400 (Richmond) | ||||||
| Last race | 1993 TranSouth 500 (Darlington) | ||||||
| First win | 1988 Checker 500 (Phoenix) | ||||||
| Last win | 1992 Champion Spark Plug 500 (Pocono) | ||||||
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| NASCAR Xfinity Series career | |||||||
| 6 races run over 2 years | |||||||
| Best finish | 50th - 1984 | ||||||
| First race | 1984 Red Carpet 200 (Milwaukee) | ||||||
| Last race | 1985 Milwaukee Sentinel 200 (Milwaukee) | ||||||
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Alan Kulwicki (December 14, 1954 - April 1, 1993) was an American NASCAR driver. He drove the #7 Ford Thunderbird, first sponsored by Zerex and later by Hooters. His first sponsor was Quincy's Steakhouse, and the car number was 35. He was nicknamed "Special K".
Background
Alan Kulwicki was born in Greenfield, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. Alan received a degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 1977. Many attribute his success to his knowledge of engineering, which at the time was considered to be of less value than experience and intuition.
Alan won the 1973 Rookie of the Year award at the now defunct Hales Corners Speedway dirt track in Franklin (another Milwaukee suburb). He won the 1979 and 1980 Late Model track championship on the pavement at the Wisconsin International Raceway.
Winston Cup Career
In 1985 Alan sold most of his belongings (except a pickup truck and a trailer) to move from Wisconsin to the southern United States. An electrical fire two days before he left destroyed his truck and trailer. He was the source of amusement at first to many veteran drivers. He was a mechanical engineer out of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in a sport in which most of his competitors only made it through high school. He could be seen walking the garage in his race uniform and carrying a brief case. He was driver, owner and oftentimes his own crew chief. He had difficulty acquiring and keeping crew members. Notable crew members include Bobby Norfleet and Paul Andrews.
Kulwicki made his first start near the end of the 1985 season for Bill Terry. In 1986, Kulwicki could not find a ride, so he fielded his first Winston Cup racing team as owner and driver. With just two cars, two engines, and two full-time crew members, he won Winston Cup Rookie of the Year.
In 1988 he won his first NASCAR race at Phoenix International Raceway. He turned around his car, and made his now famous "Polish Victory Lap" by driving the wrong way on the track (driver's side toward the fans). He got in trouble with NASCAR officials.
The final race of the 1992 season was one of the most eventful races in NASCAR history. It was the final race for Richard Petty, the first race for Jeff Gordon, and six drivers were capable to win the championship that day. Kulwicki received approval from NASCAR and Ford to change the "Thunderbird" lettering on his bumper for the race to "Underbird" because he felt like the underdog for winning the championship. After many top contenders suffered misfortune early in the race, Kulwicki and Bill Elliott were left to duel for the title. Elliott would go on to win the race, with Kulwicki placing second. However, by leading one more lap than Elliott, thus claiming the 5 bonus points for leading the most laps, Kulwicki became the 1992 Winston Cup Champion. He celebrated with his second-ever Polish Victory Lap. Before exiting his car postrace to claim his trophy, Kulwicki removed a comb from a glove box especially installed for the race in the event he emerged victorious. He then combed his hair, to the amusement of those in attendance. This was later aluded to at the awards banquet by Elliott, who presented Kulwicki with a "golden comb" award.
Kulwicki overcame a 278-point defecit in the final six races of the season to claim a 10-point victory over Elliott. It was the closest title win in NASCAR Cup Series history until the implementation of the Chase for the Cup format 12 years later. The championship was noteworthy for other reasons: he was the last owner/driver to win the title, the first Cup champion with a college degree, and the first Cup champion not born in a southern state. The victory was also particularly sweet for Kulwicki, who had turned down offers to drive for other successful owners (including Junior Johnson) to continue fielding his own team. Fittingly, the song played at the awards banquet was "My Way".
During his six-year Winston Cup career, Kulwicki won five Winston Cup races and earned 24 pole positions.
Death
Tragically, Kulwicki was killed at age 38 in a plane crash on April 1, 1993, near Blountville, Tennessee, while returning in a Hooters corporate jet from an appearance prior to spring race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Three days after Kulwicki's death, Bristol race winner Rusty Wallace honored his old short track foe by turning Kulwicki's trademark reverse "Polish Victory Lap". Every winner for the remainder of the season honored Kulwicki with a Polish victory lap. Also for the remainder of the 1993 season, all cars entered in Winston Cup and Busch Series races carried stickers of Kulwicki's stylized #7 on their left and right B-posts (the center post between the two side windows). Upon Davey Allison's death on July 13, 1993, Kulwicki's #7 was joined by the stylized #28 from Allison's car. After the final race of the season, series champion Dale Earnhardt and race winner Wallace drove a side by side Polish victory lap carrying flags for fallen heroes Kulwicki and Allison.
For much of the remainder of the 1990s, NASCAR and non-NASCAR drivers alike continued the tradition of executing a Polish Victory Lap following a race or championship win.
He was posthumously inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2002.
Lasting Impact on NASCAR
Kulwicki's success as an owner/driver sparked a small fad among NASCAR veterans. Geoff Bodine (who purchased Kulwicki's team after his death), his younger brother Brett, Ricky Rudd, and Bill Elliott all began racing teams after Kulwicki's death. However, none of them could reach the same success that Kulwicki did, and slowly but surely those drivers either sold their teams, or let them just fade away. NASCAR Nextel Cup driver Robby Gordon, the only current owner/driver in the sport who runs the full schedule, frequently mentions Alan as an inspiration for him as an owner/driver. Gordon, whose car carries the #7, picked this number as a tribute to Kulwicki.
Kulwicki Subject of Feature Film
On April 1, 2005, the very low budget feature film Dare to Dream: The Alan Kulwicki Story was released which chronicled Alan's life. The movie was created by Kulwicki's Wisconsin fans. The film was produced for less than $100,000 and was seen in 14 states and 80 cities, copies of the DVD could be found on ebay for a time. The film focuses on the events in Kulwicki's life that fed his desire to become champion... at all costs. The star of the film, Brad Webber, was a big Kulwicki fan and credits the late driver with being his inspiration to become an actor. The theme song for the film is entitled "Heroes Never Die" and was written by the writer/director of the film, David Orgas.
Trivia
- The sponsor on Kulwicki's first car was the WLPX. He raced #97 at Slinger Super Speedway and Wisconsin International Raceway.
- He wore a custom Mighty Mouse patch on his drivers suit (Mighty Mouse had an orange and white drivers suit).
- He clinched his championship at the Hooters 500 in a car sponsored by Hooters.